Not a breed, and the correct answer for most cats. A domestic shorthair is a cat of mixed ancestry, and roughly 90–95% of cats in North America are one. If a key sends you here, it is not failing.

The long-coated equivalent of a domestic shorthair, and just as much not a breed. A large fluffy cat is far more likely to be one of these than a Maine Coon, which is the breed it is most often promoted to.

One of the largest domestic breeds, and the one every large fluffy cat gets called. The build is the test rather than the size: a Maine Coon is rectangular and heavily boned, with a distinctly squared muzzle.

Separated from the Maine Coon by the profile, which is the character to learn: a straight line down the front of the face, and a head that forms an equilateral triangle.

The third of the big longhairs, and the roundest. Where the Maine Coon is rectangular and the Norwegian triangular, the Siberian is built on curves.

The flat face is the identification and also the problem. Modern show Persians are brachycephalic to a degree that causes real breathing, tear-duct and dental disease, and a page about them that does not say so is not being straight with the reader.

The pointed pattern is temperature-sensitive: the pigment enzyme only works below normal body temperature, so colour develops on the extremities. Kittens are born white and darken over weeks.

Large, pointed and blue-eyed, which is the combination people reach for Siamese to explain. The name comes from a tendency to go limp when picked up, though that is far from universal.

The grey cat people mean when they say Russian Blue or Chartreux. The coat is the test — it is dense enough to stand up rather than lie flat, and it feels like plush rather than fur.

Always blue-grey, always green-eyed, always slender. The silver tipping gives the coat a distinct shimmer that no other grey cat has.

Developed from crosses with the Asian leopard cat. The rosettes — two-toned spots with a darker outline — are what separate it from an ordinary spotted tabby, which has plain solid spots.

Not actually bald — the skin carries a fine down and the pattern underneath is visible in the pigment. The lack of coat means it loses heat fast and needs bathing, because there is no fur to absorb skin oils.

The folded ear is caused by a cartilage mutation, and that mutation does not stop at the ears. It affects cartilage throughout the body and every folded cat develops a painful degenerative joint disease. This is the one breed on this page that a page ought to argue against.

The curl goes backward rather than forward, and unlike the Scottish Fold's mutation it is not linked to skeletal disease. Kittens are born straight-eared and the curl develops over the first week.

The ticked coat is the identification: every hair carries bands of colour, so the cat looks flecked rather than patterned. It is the same mechanism as a wild rabbit's coat.

The taillessness comes from a dominant mutation affecting spinal development, which is why it carries real consequences. Tail length varies from none at all to nearly full within the same litter.

The very large low-set ears and a coat so short it is almost suede distinguish it from the Cornish Rex, which has larger ears set high and a longer body.

A Ragdoll relative separated mainly by colour: Ragamuffins come in every colour and pattern with eyes in any colour, while Ragdolls are always pointed with blue eyes.

Deceptively heavy — the phrase used in the breed is bricks wrapped in silk. The coat is short enough to show the muscle underneath and has an unusual satin sheen.

A Siamese in every colour except pointed. The build is identical and extreme — long, tubular, fine-boned — and the ears are the largest in proportion of any breed.